


when the scattered pieces come together

by jeongsa



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Countryside, F/F, some on a holiday/some not..they're a mess lads, squint 4 that samo/nahyo content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-15 19:55:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15420417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeongsa/pseuds/jeongsa
Summary: almost lovers, a third wheel, a runaway and co., a country girl with her best friend, two orphans with a lot of money they don't know what to do with.what could go wrong?





	when the scattered pieces come together

The sun was setting and Jeongyeon’s hands were beginning to stiffen at the steering wheel from lack of use. Sana was shotgun, absently sifting through a pamphlet she picked up from the past town’s information centre with no evident actual interest. Momo is seated in the back, eyes fluttering closed in exhaustion with every few minutes that pass in futile attempts to stay awake – her pillow is in the boot of the car, so her head’s only able to rest against the suspension of a taut seatbelt.

 

Jeongyeon is beginning to feel the effects of driving on an empty road for too long herself. She slowly stretches herself backwards slightly as she yawns, willing herself to look forward to the end of the drive. Half an hour.

 

The road darkens with every passing minute as the quarter moon hides in the sky.

 

Sana hums at her side, immersed within her own bored thoughts. They’ve been on the same road for what seems hours now, rather than less than one. Jeongyeon looks to her side to observe, only to catch Sana watching with eyes glossed from the only light in the car emitted being the radio control screen. “What?”

 

“You’re tired,” Sana empathises. Jeongyeon swallows when the girl lends her arm to pat her shoulder blade. It’s supposed to be a comforting gesture, and usually would be, but this time Jeongyeon only feels the coils of her muscles spring back, and she remembers to sit up straight. Sensing the obvious tension, Sana allows her hands to sink back to her own lap. She can’t do that, Jeongyeon thinks. Not now.

 

“Don’t worry,” Sana continues, “Not too far now.”

 

“Then we can sleep,” Jeongyeon is brisk, and the clock on the radio reads 6pm, but time will run longer if she can’t somewhat fix the atmosphere she'd just worsened. “Do you still have the number of the caravan park?”

 

It’s a good excuse to change the subject upon remembering the place where they’re staying in the next town over. It’s a humble area that didn’t cost a fortune to stay at, and considering their budget, there wasn’t much of another option either way. “We should double check which area we park in, I don’t want to get there and have to worry about-‘

 

“Hey, stress-head,” Sana interrupts the blossoming rant with an abrupt laugh. “I have the bay written down in my notes on my phone. We’ll get there and figure it out then, okay?”

 

“I was just checking,” Jeongyeon murmurs. She’s glad Sana chooses not to push it further. There’s a stir from the backseat, and Jeongyeon vision diverts to the rear-view mirror once again.

 

“Hey,” Momo’s sleepy voice comes from the backseat in a groan. “How far?”

 

“Half an hour,” Sana turns around in her seat to gently pat her friend’s leg that’s sticking out closest to the bottom of the gearbox. “Go back to sleep.”

 

“I really just need to pee,” Momo admits.

 

Sana frowns like there’s a possibility that she’s actually annoyed with Momo, but Jeongyeon knows better. This is play. “We went to the bathroom in the last stop, why didn’t you go then?”

 

“I didn’t need to pee, then,” Momo says, borderline whining. “Come on.”

 

“Just think about waterfalls, turning on a tap, taking a shower,” Sana begins to imitate the sound of running water now, and Jeongyeon is able to survey the exact moment Momo’s eyes dart open and a small stuffed toy she had tucked under her arm beeline for Sana’s head, of whom is still laughing and backed up against the car window in a position of mercy.

 

The two of them are dissolving into a fit of shared laughs while Jeongyeon attempts to maintain her focus on the road, but she’s distracted, watching the exchange from the corner of her eye.

 

They’re cute, Sana and Momo. Grossly so. Jeongyeon’s always secretly admired their wacky relationship. It’s the way that they’re in sync with each other, capable of understanding what the both of them want completely - something most couples can’t account for even into old age while the two of them are young. It’s due to their incredibly close friendship since childhood, as they recall moments shared during the younger years sometimes when Jeongyeon is in the mood to listen, and the stories are funny. They’re never a boring repeat of the ones she heard in high school while the moments were still happening in the background of her life rather than now, where she’s immersed within them.

 

The shared kisses and occasional fondling between both parties was a casual occurrence around a year ago before they toned it down, and it goes unsaid that the two both enjoyed their arrangement more than anything with a label slapped on top of it. It makes her wonder what really happened for it to stop.

 

Jeongyeon learned not to question it over time, however, as she’s comprehended that it can work like that for certain people, sometimes, and that the pace at which needs meet is different for everyone. The entire premise would've seemed odd to an outsider, sure, but Jeongyeon supposes she must know them better than anyone else.

 

Even if they've stopped for the most part now that they're older, the affection is still there, and they're usually cute being seen together.

 

Lately, however, Jeongyeon just feels ill at the sight.

 

The soft hum coming from the car speakers as the song changes drifts Jeongyeon back to her reality. It’s dream pop from a band she vaguely recognises from the alternative radio station back home, except it’s being played through Sana’s phone – a track Momo probably asked her to download and enjoy. She adjusts the knob until it’s loud enough to listen to clearly and stop her thinking, and Momo is already bouncing her head lightly recognising the noise, playing with her toy’s ears and squishing its cheeks.

 

Jeongyeon taps her fingertips against the steering wheel to the rhythm with her eyes on the road.

 

-

 

There’s an old lady that owns the caravan park to herself, and she gives the team a warm greeting upon the gravelly driveway Jeongyeon pulls into. She requires cash in hand rather than payment by card, but before Jeongyeon can panic at her own foolishness Momo pulls the required amount from her own wallet and tells Jeongyeon not to worry about it.

 

(Which she’ll still worry about no matter what, considering Momo doesn’t have a stable job to pay for such a thing at the moment.)

 

“My saviour,” Jeongyeon remarks, placing a hand on her chest covered by the thick parka. They’re in the small room utilised as the family park’s reception, a humble space with a simple desk and a damp smell from within taking on the appearance of a traditional bunker. Predictably, Sana is excitedly talking to the lady about the general area while the other two wait on the seats placed near the sliding door until she ends the conversation – if ever. If it gets them more than one coupon each for the local bakery she’d seen advertised on the way in, neither of them will complain.

 

“It's fine,” Momo nudges with her shoulder in jest. “You paid for the fuel up here, I’m not going to make you pay for this too.”

 

“I guess that’s true,” A corner of her mouth lifts upon noticing the slight flush on her friend’s cheeks. “Thank you, Momo.”

 

Momo, cutely, gives her a tiny smile. “You’re welcome.”

 

Sana asks the lady a series of tourist questions, like 'Are there any notable landmarks in the area?', possibly as a choice of what they could do tomorrow. It seems she’s already forgotten the promised sleep as soon as they’d arrived, much to poor Momo’s dismay – already falling asleep against the cushioning of her puffer coat. Jeongyeon overhears the old lady suggesting a lake across the other side of town, an enclosed area usually populated by the younger campers, of which she’ll dread but the other two will insist on. The lady finishes by warning them not to litter the area like others and then sends them out each with a wrapped mint likely dated to a year back. Jeongyeon shoves it in her pocket and saves it for tomorrow.

 

They’re situated towards the back of the caravan park once they get back in and manoeuvre their way around the dirt road. Momo volunteers in getting out of the car first to stand at the back and guide Jeongyeon into where the caravan is supposed to be parked.

 

“A bit more,” Momo calls into her hand, making a gesture for her to move backwards.

 

“Uh, you sure?” Jeongyeon’s foot hovers over the accelerator pedal with the other on the brakes, leaning out of the car window to view her friend from behind. “We’re already over the concrete barrier, aren’t we?”

 

“The tire’s not over it completely,” Momo explains, adamant. Jeongyeon can see her eyes squinting from the sunset over her face. “It’s okay! I’m not gonna let you hit the tree!”

 

“We’re gonna hit the tree,” Sana deadpans, still in the front seat where Momo can’t hear her from the outside. Jeongyeon catches herself snickering at the mean comment, even if she feels a little guilty her friend can’t defend herself – and the fact she’s not supposed to be laughing at Sana right now, especially away from where Momo can’t see. She stops herself

 

“Not if I’m driving,” She returns her head out of her window and reverses that slight bit more, careful, waiting for Momo’s instructions even though she’s going to finish reversing when she sees fit regardless. “Let’s see.”

 

“Stop!” Momo motions her hand after a few seconds and Jeongyeon complies by footing the brakes.

 

Sana remains quiet.

 

“Perfect. Let's grab the bags from the back.”

 

It’s a surprisingly quiet area for a summer hotspot, although it _is_ already a small town. Apart from the low hum of conversation ahead where the barbecue area in the park is designated, there’s an element of peace. The idea of sleeping straight away goes out of the window when they realise they need to have something to eat, or else they’ll sleep hungry and blow the next day’s budget on a cafe cooked breakfast, which is a luxury they can’t afford.

 

Jeongyeon finally gets the fire pit alight after several attempts (no thanks to Sana accidentally offering green leaves she'd found as the kindling), whilst Momo wails about the smell of cooking meat from the other side of the park. By the end of the saga, Jeongyeon feels her own stomach rumbling a little, too.

 

“Any idea where we put the groceries?” Jeongyeon pokes the fire with a stick to realign the plank of wood.

 

“Oh, the bag is in the cupboards,” Sana jumps out of her camp chair to the caravan door close by. “What do we all feel like?”

 

“Just grab a few instant ramen packets,” Jeongyeon suggests, not looking, leaning back with a weathered sigh. “There’s a pot in there somewhere, we’ll just boil it over the fire. ‘Can’t be bothered to do anything else. Too lazy.”

 

“The authentic camping experience, I guess,” Momo grins, oblivious, nudging Jeongyeon’s arm with her elbow from her chair beside.

 

Jeongyeon offers a smile back. “Might as well.”

 

Sana returns after her rummaging and throws the packets onto Jeongyeon’s lap while she sets up the stand for the pot – a rust covered structure that sits over the small open flames, one Jeongyeon found in her Father’s shed from when he’d take trips to the countryside to fish.

 

“Are... are these the really spicy ones only the two of you two eat?” Momo asks, after a while.

 

Sana coos, a soft sound. “I made sure we didn’t buy the spicy ones _just_ for you.”

 

It wasn’t her, it was Jeongyeon’s purchase. It was also Jeongyeon that attended the supermarket alone, after insisting she didn’t need assistance when Sana hopefully offered to assist the trip – how unhelpful such a thing would be, Jeongyeon theorises; why waste time when she accomplishes the task herself? When she goes alone she can organise the list and stick to it without anyone else getting in the way of her plans.

 

Momo scrunches her nose, realising the error in truth herself. “Wasn’t it Jeongyeon that bought it?”

 

“Okay, so maybe it was,” Sana admits, with Momo feigning immediate shock and lightly shoving her away. Huffing, Sana returns to bending over, equipping the filled pot to the clip of the stand. She skilfully swats the childish motions of Momo nudging her backside with dust-covered slip-ons and who is snickering, puerile. Jeongyeon’s gaze mindlessly settles upon the sight of dust marks on her backside.

 

“Tell me, Jeongyeon,” Sana turns her neck from where she’s crouching, looking up from below. Jeongyeon’s eyes avert to the girl’s face as she stares a silent dare, glaring down at her, almost begging her to have the audacity to say something stupid right now as if she’s in any position to. “Is it hard being so perfect all the time?”

 

“I get by,” She replies blandly. Not quite the reaction Sana was hoping for, as she remains quiet when placing the lid atop of the fixture with a loud, metallic clang. Momo’s feet somewhat sulkily collapse back to the dirt, bored of the action already when Sana stops providing her with entertainment, clearly bothered by something Momo just can’t put her finger on.

 

Jeongyeon looks away.

 

-

 

Not ten minutes past 8 o’clock, Momo begins to doze off in her chair shortly after she’d forced Jeongyeon to toast her own marshmallow she ‘couldn’t reach’ for herself. Jeongyeon’s figures she can put a little effort in to make this holiday a good one, for Momo at least. She’s been excited about it ever since it was conceptualised.

 

“Alright, let's get you to bed,” Sana murmurs from behind, removing the sunglasses Momo perched to rest upon her head to block out the glare of setting suns and places it in the middle of her T-shirt. Jeongyeon aids in her arm’s relief by finally pulling it away, blowing on the toasted confectionery so Momo doesn’t burn her tongue - she tends to get carried away with food regardless of its temperature. Momo accepts it with a goofy smile, pulling it away from the stick once Jeongyeon offers it up and falls straight into her mouth.

 

There’s travesty alongside her sore arm in how sleeping arrangements were forgotten to be made previously, also. Jeongyeon realises this with dread as she enters the caravan after finishing the cleaning up, where hunching her back considerably is due to her height.

 

There’s the one double bed she can make out in the dark with Momo beyond knocked out underneath the sheets, and the small sill beside it at the rectangular window meant for one person. _The third wheel_.

 

Sana is still up, and she pauses in the middle of making herself at home with her few belongings she’d chosen to take along for the ride, staring at Jeongyeon’s entry. Her toiletries are neatly placed at the side of the smaller option, next to the towel she’ll use for a shower in the morning.

 

“You can sleep in the bed,” Jeongyeon says. It seems like an act of kindness, as no one really wants to end up with the uncomfortable foam mattress, but Sana they fully understands that it’s an order. Jeongyeon unravels the weighted jacket off of her shoulders quietly enough for Momo to remain asleep, placing it next to the sink that can’t run water, not until it’s connected. None of them know how to do that. She makes a mental note to ask the receptionist on duty in the morning.

 

“Oh,” Sana seems surprised at the direct speech towards her, even seeming somewhat satisfied at the initiation of conversation, moving closer to the edge of the bed. “I just thought you might... you might want-”

 

“You don’t have to worry about it,” Jeongyeon coldly defers. The zip of her cheap travel bag glides instead of getting caught onto a piece of frayed fabric like it usually does, thank god, she thinks while pulling out the pyjama bottoms she’d packed for the first night.

 

Undoing the button of her skinny jeans, she waits for Sana to respond in protest, who she figures is probably watching her undress right now if she turns around quickly enough.

  
 

The night wind gusts smash against the tinny caravan, sending them both to gasp and jump a little in their own skins, Jeongyeon even more conscious of the fact her skull nearly kissed the roof trying to peel off her suffocating pants. Sana slides into the double bed in silent protest and goes still.

 

“Sleep well,” Jeongyeon adds, a minute later. No response.

 

Sana isn’t good at avoidance, Jeongyeon knows this better than anyone, but she can’t let it overrule the agreement made. There’s time to wait and see if the issue can dissipate on its own, conveniently lost in the supposed summer fun Jeongyeon was promised multiple times and met with disbelief. The way it’s going now, she wouldn’t be surprised if they returned home early, but it’s in everyone’s best interest to try, at least. If not for Momo, just for the sake of it. They’ve made it this far without killing each other.

 

Wait and see, she will.

 

\--

 

Chaeyoung is all veggie patches, summer and sunshine.

 

It’s obviously the perfect time of the year to be out in the sun, and she enjoys being outside to soak it up before it all fades away when the autumn comes. Dahyun enjoys to tease by her own nature and tell her that she’s like a plant going through photosynthesis sometimes when she’s tending to her garden. It’s funny, as Chaeyoung is always tanned all over from the exposure and even living in the country, Dahyun’s remained the colour of snow for the entirety of her life.

 

They spend quality time together in the way of the quiet Dahyun seated under a tree with a book in tow, and Chaeyoung watering the various vegetables she has in her expansive backyard with various trees bearing fruit, the most valuable being the orange tree which is useless until the winter time. It’s a worry she possesses that she’ll never bear enough fruit for the roadside sales she does for extra money - which she and her family need more than anything after the repairs they’ve needed to be done on the house weeks before.

 

“Hello, Earth to Chaeyoung,” Dahyun waves a hand in front of Chaeyoung’s face - of whom is uncharacteristically dissatisfied by something, yet she’s not quite sure what, sitting atop of the swing set with her feet dragging to the ground. “What are you thinking about this time?”

 

“I don’t know,” Chaeyoung answers, and it’s honest for that moment - the wind is picking up and it’s certainly distracting in the way the wind brushes her fringe into her eyes.

 

“You don’t know?” Dahyun pokes her bicep a couple of times, Chaeyoung still unmoving, and she lowers her voice like the only way for her voice to be heard isn’t through the trees. “Is your Mum being shit again?”

 

“Not tonight,” Chaeyoung says.

 

“A miracle,” Dahyun marvels, clearly happy to get the topic out of the way so they can get back to a less serious mood. “So...you’re sad because the sun went down?”

 

“I’m fine,” Chaeyoung finally reacts to her friend’s stupid questions, who’s clearly proud for being able to make the girl smile again. “And what does that even mean? You always make me out to follow this weird, farm girl stereotype.”

 

“Wait,” Dahyun feigns an expression of deep thought and it's goofy enough to send Chaeyoung into a giggle already. “You’re saying you aren’t?”

 

Chaeyoung gives her one last death-impending look before she takes a big swing backwards and is barely able to nudge a squealing Dahyun with the edge of her sandal, who was able to anticipate her friend’s every lash-out from how used to each other they are - they’re a couple of losers, but they’re losers that stick together. Chaeyoung doesn’t know what she’d do without her.

 

Dahyun is able to catch her breath after the two’s giggle fits dissipate, and she walks slowly back over to stand in front of the younger, staring into the dirt patch where the grass doesn’t quite cover. “Well… if you figure it out, let me know.”

 

Chaeyoung snickers. “Sure thing.”

 

“You may joke now,” Dahyun comically raises her eyebrows, pointing, “But one day, somehow, I’ll figure out what’s going on inside of that head of yours.”

 

Chaeyoung’s mind is always said to be working into overdrive, buzzing with creative ideas and faraway concepts she’ll never get around to touching upon, but there’s been something plaguing her mind in particular ever since she turned eighteen. She finds it hard to sleep sometimes regardless of her mother fighting with her boyfriend from the kitchen, and she’ll have an old record on to play over it anyway.

 

Chaeyoung has an idea. It’s something so innately nocuous she isn’t sure she’ll ever be able to pull it off - but she needs the money first, above anything else.

 

Dahyun’s sitting peacefully at her feet now, even though she knows the dirt will catch onto the back of her jean shorts, pulling her book out from her straw back - the professional translation of the Great Gatsby. It’s a classical novel Chaeyoung had read a long time ago from the depths of her bookshelf when she needed the entertainment her parents would never give her.

 

Almost as if she senses it, Dahyun looks up to Chaeyoung staring down at her mindlessly, and she smiles before returning her nose back down to the page she was skimming. Her grin is always so kind and pure-spirited, and from the bottom of her heart, she knows her best friend truly cares when she’s like this - fleeing her own family to come and keep Chaeyoung company at dusk when she could be studying, could be doing something else meaningful with her time that doesn’t involve a girl with ridiculously impulsive tendencies.

 

Her friend won’t understand if she tries to explain it like all of her other crazy ideas - this one is by far the most drastic.

 

So for now, Chaeyoung is quiet, and she'll stay that way until she has a real plan.  

 

-

 

The room reeks of smoke. Jihyo is used to it, of course, and the incense sticks do their job of masking the smell to an extent, but the second she opens the sliding door it hits her like a brick wall. Where their newest young comrade is nowhere to be seen, Nayeon is instead horizontally perched upon the fold-up chair, feet resting upon the arms with a bottle of metallic blue nail polish in her hand, painting her nails.

 

“You’re back,” Nayeon observes. "You look nice."

 

“Yeah,” Jihyo remembers to enter the cabin instead of standing there, rendered useless and rests the purchased groceries on the small bench to take a moment before unloading. “Thanks. Where’d the girl go?”

 

“Chae had to go and eat,” Nayeon pronounces the new nickname she’s created for the younger girl with a cutesy lilt, choosing not to look up to her friend to speak. “Her mother called, she had to leave.”

 

“Right. And how do you know she won’t tell on you?”

 

“Why would she?” Nayeon hunches over in her sitting position, blowing on the product to set after the decided last coat. “We haven’t done anything wrong.”

 

“You smell like a music festival right now,” Jihyo counters, ignoring the fact Nayeon grouped her into it with the ‘we’. “That’s not enough for her to rat you out?”

 

Nayeon sends a final blow before finally meeting the opposite’s eyes above, playful. “She’s young and curious, Jihyo. She’s not gonna do shit.”

 

Jihyo moves to the other side of the bench to unload the groceries into the mini fridge they’ve been allocated for the stay, eyebrows raised. “Don’t get her hopes up.”

 

“It’s not like that,” Nayeon lets out a single laugh, swivelling her waist in the chair to rest her arms atop of each other, her chin resting upon the backs of her hands. “The poor girl is probably just bored.”

 

“Thank God she has you now,” Jihyo snickers. “Right?”

 

“I mean it,” Nayeon rolls her eyes at the remark. “She was talking to me about it, her Mum’s insane. I just think she needs an outlet."

 

"An outlet."

 

"I’ve got what she doesn’t have," Nayeon confirms, like she's spouting wisdom. It's worse than Jihyo thought.  

 

Jihyo raises a brow, placing a stray utensil into the third drawer. “Weed?”

 

“Better,” Nayeon smiles, not even bothering to react to the sarcasm. “Freedom.”

 

The way Nayeon speaks nowadays is of a similar nature to a fairytale.

 

She must know Jihyo despises it - it shows in the downturn of her lips every time the subject arises, the disdain evident in the silence that follows the speech. Perhaps it’s a direct attempt at being annoying, ignoring it, waiting for Jihyo to state her stupidity out loud after her initial statement of concern, for her to snap her out of the spell she’s currently under. If so, she won’t say it aloud. The girl is particularly pigheaded.

 

Such an idyllic depiction of a situation much more shitty than the either of them would care to admit is a for sure sign the girl is going under. For once, no matter how much it breaks her own heart to watch - Jihyo thinks Nayeon might need to learn it the hard way.

  
 

The girl stands after her ridiculous statement, deliberately splaying her toes flat in a waddle-walk to spare the varnish against the cool clumsy linoleum sprawl. Jihyo hasn’t lifted her gaze to humour the girl once. Nayeon seems to notice because her once smooth hands soon glide over Jihyo’s torso as she’s slightly bent over the first drawer to put the utensils away. Jihyo bites her lip at the warmth of Nayeon’s sudden breath at the back of her neck.

 

This isn’t new. Nayeon and Jihyo have messed around a few times before, albeit when they were both drunk - but the frequency changed. Ever since they’ve run off together for however long they’re stuck here, Nayeon’s sex drives been in full throttle and Jihyo is finding it hard to keep up.

 

From plain sight, it seems that the more Nayeon is bored, the more desirable Jihyo becomes - not that Jihyo is complaining, because she enjoys it. Complaining would make her a hypocrite.

 

“Come on,” Nayeon playfully prompts, continuing to attempt for her reaction when her thumbs draw into the belt loops at the rise of Jihyo’s jeans. It pulls the girl backwards slightly into Nayeon’s embrace, who murmurs into her ear, “Live a little.”

 

It’s definitely an attempt to be annoying.

 

“Nayeon,” Jihyo strains, closing the drawer with a bang slightly too loud to not be tense - but she doesn’t push the girl off from behind, instead cowering further into the counter, legs a little shaky. Why won’t she push her away? “I just got back.”

 

“So?” Nayeon simply says, and her hand releases from her pants momentarily to linger at the hem, dangerously close to where the younger’s underwear sits comfortably - which are nothing special, mind you, just normal briefs. It’s not exactly a lavish vacation they’re on where Jihyo needed to consider packing any lace, and the bore water would ruin the finish.

 

Nayeon hasn’t ever seemed to notice the effort, anyway.

 

“So,” Jihyo continues through a stern, controlled breath, and Nayeon’s fingers become more distracting by the second with the drawing of circles into her hips. “I have things to do.”

 

“So do them later,” Nayeon counters with a huff. “Please?”

 

Nayeon’s touch is as destructive as you think it would be for a girl that can run away from an honest life so easily.

 

She wastes no time in tearing off Jihyo’s shirt when the girl finally relents like every other time, always a little stupid and self-indulgent, but it’s not much to think about when she has Nayeon wasting no seconds to lift the girl onto the space left at the counter and frantically shoving the biodegradable bag out of sight. Jihyo’s pants barely allow to pool at her ankles but Nayeon is quickly distracting her from this fact, making her feel so good with the other cradling her head steady between her thighs and beginning to fuck her with her tongue.

 

She knows what to do, and they’ve done it so many times before, yet Jihyo with no one else.

 

Jihyo pushes Nayeon’s head against her core a little harder, and she hears Nayeon’s muffled gasp before letting her breathe once more, taking the opportunity to dip a little lower to stroke at her entrance. She never stops, no matter how much Jihyo attempts to test the possibility of it, and it tightens her stomach with pleasure quickly enough that she sometimes wishes Nayeon would slow down to let her ride it out.

 

Nayeon’s nails determinedly dig into the soft flesh at her thighs as they’re trembling out of the climax, stronger than her past few from the week even if her ass is uncomfortably cold against the linoleum counter. From below, the girl is pulling her pants back up again and Jihyo, slightly out of breath, watches the underwear slip back up her legs. It’s then she realises she also forgot to shave. 

 

“You next,” Jihyo breathes out her grin, taking her hand as it stops at her abdomen where her buttons lie. “Come here.”

 

Nayeon shakes her head and takes Jihyo's hand out of contact range. “No, I don’t need it. Just felt like making you feel good.”

 

Something about the phrase feels off to Jihyo, and her stomach drops observing Nayeon’s last finishing touches on robotically sprucing up the girl’s outfit to make it look like she didn’t get just get eaten out on a tabletop.

 

Jihyo maintains her smile. “Why?”

  
 

Nayeon slowly leans outward again to stand, offering Jihyo back her T-shirt that was strewn onto the other side of the sink and is now regretfully damp at one side. She’s amused by this fact, but there’s still a sublte squint in her eyes at Jihyo’s motive to question. “Do I need a reason?”

 

The disappointment settles. “No, of course not.”

 

It’s eccentric how quickly the two of them can move on after such a scene together.

 

Nayeon’s still keeping her toes spread in case of misplaced varnish when she moves to get them both a drink out of the mini-fridge. Jihyo fronts that she isn’t bothered by Nayeon’s lacklustre response and hops down from the counter slowly, continuing to pick back up where she left off with the grocery bag, barely looking at the other as she places the cold can beside her.

 

Nayeon returns to the loveseat to close her eyes, slipping past in her summer-themed crop and fly sunglasses perched atop of her head - probably to dream of a universe where her Father never calls her mobile phone ever again. Jihyo’s mouth crinkles in shame.

 

 _Careful_ , her mother always used to say. _If the wind changes, you’ll stay like that_.  
 

-

 

The clasp of Tzuyu's necklace was a pain to release.  

 

Her fingertips were smaller than most, but even so, the fidgety metal refused to release.

 

"Mina."

 

She's sifting through her hair with a comb after a light shower, dressed in a silk nightgown. Mina's placed herself next to the large glass window overseeing the bay, where Tzuyu's convinced she's been sitting at for nearly half an hour, just staring into the moon reflecting against the seawater with knees to her chest. For some reason, it’s a bother.

 

"Mhm."

 

"Can you help me take this off, please?"

 

Mina moves off the windowsill, pushing herself up with her hands to assist.

 

The both of them don't speak much to each other, but when they do, it's easy to see how they would get along so well - they both enjoy the solitude in sharing a room together.

 

Tzuyu wouldn't exactly call them friends, but they aren't enemies either. They've come to understand each other over the past year in their situation they've gotten themselves into, and it's a vast improvement from her last. Secretly, she thinks Mina might feel the same way.

 

Mina lifts the metal chain resting at Tzuyu's neck once she slips it into a pile to fall down one shoulder to make it easier, and she manages to get the job done in mere seconds. She holds the ends in her hands as if she wants to say something, and Tzuyu anticipates her from the vanity mirror, signalling a silent permission.

 

"Is this from your parents? I've never asked."

 

"Yes."

 

Mina is still. “Why are you taking it off?”

 

Tzuyu noticed a scuff the night before on the back of the gold pendant, and foolishly, she’d let herself be affected by it. It’s an old necklace - she should’ve expected it to weather at some point, but she couldn't help but blame herself for the tarnish and not taking care of it properly. It’s why she’d locked herself in the upstairs room for most of the afternoon and Mina had to delay her walk to the beach because her swimsuit was folded up onto the bed.

 

Mina gestures for the girl to move her hair again for the necklace to come off properly, and Tzuyu holds her hand out for Mina to delicately place it in the centre of her palm. She never expects replies, and it’s nice. She doesn’t believe in needing to give explanations, either.

 

Once Mina is finished, she floats back to the surface of her bed, likely donned in some Egyptian cotton sheets with a thread count so high the thought would make you dizzy, and her vision reverts back to the window.

 

There’s nothing out there but plain ocean and sand, so Tzuyu wonders just how much of it exactly reminds her of her past.

 

“I won’t be here when you wake up in the morning,” Mina softly says, as she always does - her voice is velvet no matter the circumstance. “Will you tell them I’ve gone for a walk?”

 

Ever since the guardians relaxed the initial rules a bit, Mina’s taken full advantage of the newfound freedom and frequently enjoys her time spent outside and away from the holiday house. Tzuyu purses her lips, but nods all the same. She’s not stupid enough to do something reckless, and she supposes they’ll assume that anyway - she loves being away and doing things on her own terms, ever has since she moved into the house at twenty years old.

 

Tzuyu can’t be angry about it. She can’t seem to be angry about much of anything at the moment, not even the fact that she’s isolated in the middle of nowhere, and she’s missing her dog. With the single candle lit on the vanity desk in the room and Mina clearly paying her no attention, she plays pretend like a child that had toys when they were younger and closes her eyes.

 

Lowering her face, she blows it out quickly like a pink birthday candle, and bleakly, she wishes for home.

 

**Author's Note:**

> oi!! come yell at me (nicely) at @jeongyeonation on twitter <3 
> 
> crossposted to aff @jeongyeons


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